In this Section

bull Golden Star Resources | Page 8

bull MEDA | Page 12

SDG 1 No Poverty

Golden Star Resources Limited

The Golden Star Oil Palm Plantation (GSOPP) was established in April 2006 as a non-profit subsidiary of Golden Star

GSOPP promotes the development of oil palm plantations amongst our host communities using the smallholder concept in partnership with Traditional Authorities and affected farmers and with the support of the agro-forestry industry and other partners

Through GSOPP we continue to advance the businesses objectives of reducing poverty through employment generation and promoting wealth creation through sustainable agri-business Funded by Golden Star through US$1 per ounce of gold produced to date we have directed over $66 million to this important initiative

Over the last three years GSOPP has passed a number of significant milestones truly demonstrating the impact and sustainability of this important social enterprise initiative

bull Plantations reached over 10 years of age ndash demonstrating long-term commercial viabilitybull Farmer Associations have been established and recognised as industry leading practicebull The GSOPP beneficiary age has reduced demonstrating the program is a viable alternative

livelihood for youthbull Farmers who were formerly on the poverty line now enjoy farm revenues well in excess of this

levelbull Consistent application of best farm management practices ensures yields are more than 3 times

the small-holder average for Ghana bull Commencement of a micro credit scheme for beneficiaries that will act as savings model for

future re-plantingbull Some 28 of the farm workforce are female and 36 youth (lt45 yrs) ndash demonstrating diversity

and inter-generational equity

GSOPP is a landmark initiative in Ghana utilising former subsistence farms to generate high-value cash crop The demonstration of sustainable alternative livelihoods is a developing world imperative necessary to reduce the prevalence of illegal mining with its inherent environmental impacts and land use conflicts

How was your primary SDG focus identified and prioritized in the companyrsquos value chain

Golden Star as a signatory to the UNGC since 2005 has consistently applied the principles MDGs and now SGDs to drive our corporate responsibility agenda

The GSOPP model is the company legacy intended to last well beyond the life of our mines as a lasting testimony to the role the extractives sector should play in economic development

More meaningful than infrastructure alone GSOPP is a social enterprise initiative designed to build capacity in a sustainable and traditional way that has significance for our host communities Benefits to the company also flow from the initiative including maintenance of social licence and discouragement of conflicting land uses

The Western Region of Ghana where our mines operate is known as the oil palm belt of Africa Oil palm is indigenous to Ghana and is traditionally a major export

GSOPP is established solely on former subsistence farms with no forest land take Indeed the GSOPP model goes further as GSOPP does not own the land upon which the plantations are established ndash rather GSOPP is a partnership with Traditional Owners ensuring benefits are shared in an equitable way

The revenue sharing model for GSOPP provides 5 of profit to Traditional Owners (a customary land tenancy amount) 20 to loan repayment (ploughed back into ongoing plantation establishment) and 5 to GSOPP for plantation administration (including road upkeep) All remaining profit directly benefits beneficiary farmers

The VP-CR reports annually to the Golden Star Board on the performance of GSOPP with regards to our objectives for poverty reduction

8

How was your primary SDG integrated and anchored throughout your business

The goal relating to No Poverty is anchored in the Golden Star business in many ways and as an example of real interdependence the objectives for GSOPP simultaneously assist Golden Star more broadly in our core business

In Ghana as elsewhere in the world there is considerable tension over land access and uses At the same time great expectation follows the arrival of a mine in a host community and whilst it may be desired a company cannot employ everyone who wants work in the mine

As a synergy of our mining business Golden Star determined to develop a model for sustainable alternative livelihoods to demonstrate to host communities that good reliable incomes can be made outside of the mining industry and that people need not turn to illegal mining to be successful if they cannot find mainstream employment

Our commitment to GSOPP and its goals for poverty eradication are demonstrated in our Community Development and Support Policy and our contribution of $1 per ounce of gold produced being directed to GSOPP for a total commitment to date of over US$66MAdditionally GSOPP and its objective to end poverty is integrated and anchored in our business in the following way

bull GSOPP leadership report directly to the VP Corporate Responsibility

bull Key members of the GSOPP Board hold positions within the company

bull GSOPP reports routinely on achievement of its targets for poverty reduction

This is in addition to other programs through our mining business on wealth creation value retention and benefit sharing

Were any partnerships leveraged or created

The very model of GSOPP is one of partnership Golden Star is a private company that has established a not-for-profit business - GSOPP GSOPP (provides start-up capital systems standards management and agronomic expertise) partners with Traditional Landowners (provide land) beneficiary farmers (operate the farms) host communities (supply farm labour) and the agro-forestry industry (who provide extension support and specialized industry expertise as well as act as downstream market) GSOPP receives the support of the agro-forestry industry in several specialized areas of agronomics including foliar analysis soils analysis pest and disease control These services are provided to GSOPP for free under the partnership GSOPP has been invited to participate in the much awaited Tree Crops Development Board and various oil palm and cashew alliances

Other key partners of GSOPP in the past three years have included GIZ (aid agency) who have partnered with Golden Star and GSOPP to bring numerous social welfare and health programs to the GSOPP beneficiaries In 2018 through one such partnership GIZ matched Golden Star funding with donor funding for long-lasting insecticide treated nets (for malaria reduction) Golden Star issued its nets to its workforce and GIZ matched that funding with 3000 nets for host community from which all GSOPP participants (beneficiary farmers and farm workers) received a family sized net (in Ghana most families sleep in a single room all together)In another partnership with the Solidaridad Network (aid agency) GSOPP has been supported with programs on agronomics and out-grower programs to expand GSOPP outreach

Did you employ any innovative approaches in your efforts to implement the goal

The entire GSOPP is innovative Within Ghana the government and private sector have a long history of working towards developing a lasting social enterprise initiative to provide employment and reduce poverty Built upon previous less successful models in the country the GSOPP concept was developed to address the myriad of seemingly conflicting needs of projects of this typebull Buy in and partnership with Traditional Landownersbull Modalities for ensuring consistent application of international

best practicesbull Structured in a way to ensure regular high-value income to

participantsbull Company need to avoid displacement (as a company that

ascribes to IFC Performance Standard 5)bull Equitable and fair involvement of genuine host community

members (not internal immigrants)bull Revolving model where loan repayments fund plantation

expansion allowing for new participant beneficiariesbull Identification of partners who support our intent for GSOPP ndash

that of host community benefit

The GSOPP model is now widely regarded in Ghana as one of the very few projects of its scale that has successfully leveraged these aspects (formerly considered constraints) to become assets of the approachIn fact in 2018 alone Golden Star and GSOPP hosted numerous study tours and groups to review the model and its milestone successes includingbull Ministry of Trade and Industrybull Minerals Commissionbull 1D1F ndash Initiative of the Ghana Governmentbull Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Internationale Zusammenarbeit

(GIZ)bull The Canadian High Commissionbull The Solidaridad Networkbull Newmont Gold Corporation

The expansion of GSOPP into former mined lands in 2017 and 2018 has separately been recognised by the Canada Mining Innovation Council as innovative

9

How were KPIs and the levels of success outlined and defined

Some key measures of impact and success were identified as followsbull Impact on poverty eradication ndash beneficiaries earn well above

the living wage for Ghana (2018 860-900 GHc per month)bull Traditional landowner support in the form of agreement for use

of land ndash some 6000 Ha of land now committedttbull Improvement in financial security of participants - formerly

poverty stricken farmers now earn 47 times the mean consumption level and more than 17 times the Ghanaian poverty line In real terms farmers earn more than District Education heads

bull Farmer social security elements ndashmost had no bank account no insurance and no savings Now all now have bank accounts more than half have National Health Insurance (was higher prior than 2018 as the Government ran out of insurance cards) and most now have savings

bull Land use acceptability ndash where illegal mining was previously considered the only high value earning alternative to formal mining GSOPP is now upheld as a viable alternative This is most evident in the fact that despite wide-scale devastation in the country generally for illegal mining at no point in time have the GSOPP plantations suffered any incursion from illegal miners

bull Multiple and sequential land use ndash with the expansion of GSOPP into former mined lands ie two former tailings storage facilities of the company Golden Star has demonstrated that one high value land use (mining) does not have to displace other high value uses if sequential land use principles are applied

bull Intergenerational equity ndash most participant dependents are now in school (gt80) most farmers have successors identified (89) and most successors are trained on oil palm cultivation (60)

How were reporting and monitoring conceptualized and undertaken

GSOPP is a subsidiary company registered with and governed by the laws of Ghana As such GSOPP reporting and monitoring covers three primary arenas

Firstly GSOPP must operate as company and comply and report according to all relevant company law including Board reporting financial reporting and similar

Secondly as a commercial scale agricultural company monitoring and reporting on various agronomic metrics sales and revenues is conducted

Thirdly as the leading social enterprise initiative of Golden Star additional reporting and monitoring occurs to ensure achievements of the objectives of poverty reduction and wealth creation This is conducted in the following waysbull Baseline and periodic socioeconomic impact assessments are

carried outbull Routine agronomic metrics are collected analysed and

reported on

bull Routine field evaluations are conducted to ensure conformance to best farm management practices

bull Engagement and consultation with beneficiaries and participants to understand needs

bull Development of Farmer Associations ndash to ensure internal mechanisms for self-monitoring and reporting are established

bull Programs to monitor the evolution of GSOPP towards future objectives such as

Organic growth Downstream processing Farmer succession planning Future re-plantingbull Monitoring and reporting on impact based KPIs (see previous

section)bull Monitoring of systems such as those for communications

grievance and incidents

With the support and advice of our various partners GSOPP has continued to grow and evolve and new methods of monitoring and reporting have been implemented over time

What communications strategy did you employ to share the initiative with your stakehoders

The Traditional Owners enter into an MOU allowing GSOPP use of the land for plantation ensuring FPIC principles are upheld GSOPP with the Golden Star contribution develops the plantations on the lands offered using a local labour pool from the host community creating immediate employment and stable incomes for households on the plantation

After 4 years of development under GSOPP management the plantation reaches income level and 4 Ha plots are allocated The selection of beneficiaries is based on impact and resident status and is conducted by a panel comprising landowners (2) GSOPP (2) elected official for the area (1) and 2 observers (chief farmers) GSOPP continues to provide management and support to farmers and the farmers receive an interest free loan to develop their plantation

Tenancy agreements are established with farmers incorporating loan re-payment obligations for maintenance harvesting and sale of farm proceeds The interest-free loan repayments are directed back into GSOPP for continued operation and expansion

With this concept of partnership the major issues confronting land tenure associated with large scale agricultural developments are to a greater extent minimized

GSOPP has a structured approach to communications includingbull Monthly Farmer Association and field advisory meetings with

smallholder groups bull Periodic field demonstrationsbull Regular field inspection with smallholder farmersbull Production and issuance of Farmer Loan Statements bull Annual meetings with agronomic industry experts bull Production performance review meetings

In addition to these elements of communications strategy Golden Star maintains a separate three-tiered consultation structure and grievance mechanism as required by IFC PS 5

10

What were some key lessons learned Please also elaborate on any setbacks you may have encountered

Key lessons learnedbull Most small-holders in Ghana plant wildings (harvested from

the wild) which do not always achieve the yield of nursery farmed high yielding varietals

bull Participants require regular income (which the model provides for)

bull Participants respond well to agronomic extension activitiesbull Diligence and persistence is required to ensure adherence to

best farm management practices - systems must be in place to ensure defaulting cannot occur to reduce risk to the entire plantation

bull The system of farmer loans ensures ownership commitment and pride in success ndash these are key to the viability of the social enterprise initiative

bull The GSOPP model for engagement and agreement (MOU) with Traditional Landowners ensures land access prohibits conflicting land uses from being allowed and ensures lsquoownershiprsquo by these critical stakeholders

bull Obtaining fertilizer on credit frees up capital for annual plantation expansion

bull Collaboration and partnership with NGOs aid agencies private and public sector has dramatically enhanced the sustainability elements of GSOPP These partnerships leverage the best of the partners for the benefits of host communities

GSOPP has not encountered any real set-backs as considerable time and energy has been spent to ensure a robust and viable model for development If the host community were engaged on this point they would highlight that having additional funding to accelerate the rate of expansion would be desirable so more people can benefit

What were the key impacts and results Feel free to include links to external reports or sources in your answer

Key impactsbull Over 750 employed - 317 farmers and 430 workers More than

either of our mine businessesbull Yields 3 times Ghanaian small-holder average ndash industry

leading practice for Ghanabull Developed on former subsistence farms - no damage to land of

conservation valuebull Almost a third of participants are female 7 of farmers are

under 30 and 36 under 45 years of agebull 1133 hectares of oil palm plantations are established in ten

host communitiesbull Production at a modest 529 t in 2010 has increased to over

10000 t in 2018 Since 2010 63761 t has been produced realizing significant revenues to farmers and regular wages for workers

bull Farmers earn ~ 14016 Ghc pa 17 times the poverty line and well above the 2018 Ghana living wage

bull gt 80 of farmer and worker dependents are at school

SustainabilityGSOPP has successfullybull Established Farmer Associations at all plantationsbull Inaugurated a micro credit scheme in a country where credit is

difficult to accessbull Commenced organic growth into former mined lands -

recognised by Canada Mining Innovation Council bull Documented a business plan and case for downstream

processing

RecognitionGSOPP has received national and international recognitionbull 2008 Nedbank Capital Green Mining Award (Limited Resources

Category) ndash first time this was ever awarded outside of South Africa

bull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Award winner ndash Golden Star (incorporating GSOPP)

bull 2018 Ghana Mining Industry Awards - Best Performer in Corporate Social Investment

bull Recognition at three Ghanaian National Farmers Day celebrations

Linksbull Tenth anniversary of GSOPP blogbull GSOPP winner of Ghana Mining Industry Award for Corporate

Social Investmentbull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Awards

winner videobull GSOPP Portfolios

11

Golden Star Resources Limited

The Golden Star Oil Palm Plantation (GSOPP) was established in April 2006 as a non-profit subsidiary of Golden Star

GSOPP promotes the development of oil palm plantations amongst our host communities using the smallholder concept in partnership with Traditional Authorities and affected farmers and with the support of the agro-forestry industry and other partners

Through GSOPP we continue to advance the businesses objectives of reducing poverty through employment generation and promoting wealth creation through sustainable agri-business Funded by Golden Star through US$1 per ounce of gold produced to date we have directed over $66 million to this important initiative

Over the last three years GSOPP has passed a number of significant milestones truly demonstrating the impact and sustainability of this important social enterprise initiative

bull Plantations reached over 10 years of age ndash demonstrating long-term commercial viabilitybull Farmer Associations have been established and recognised as industry leading practicebull The GSOPP beneficiary age has reduced demonstrating the program is a viable alternative

livelihood for youthbull Farmers who were formerly on the poverty line now enjoy farm revenues well in excess of this

levelbull Consistent application of best farm management practices ensures yields are more than 3 times

the small-holder average for Ghana bull Commencement of a micro credit scheme for beneficiaries that will act as savings model for

future re-plantingbull Some 28 of the farm workforce are female and 36 youth (lt45 yrs) ndash demonstrating diversity

and inter-generational equity

GSOPP is a landmark initiative in Ghana utilising former subsistence farms to generate high-value cash crop The demonstration of sustainable alternative livelihoods is a developing world imperative necessary to reduce the prevalence of illegal mining with its inherent environmental impacts and land use conflicts

How was your primary SDG focus identified and prioritized in the companyrsquos value chain

Golden Star as a signatory to the UNGC since 2005 has consistently applied the principles MDGs and now SGDs to drive our corporate responsibility agenda

The GSOPP model is the company legacy intended to last well beyond the life of our mines as a lasting testimony to the role the extractives sector should play in economic development

More meaningful than infrastructure alone GSOPP is a social enterprise initiative designed to build capacity in a sustainable and traditional way that has significance for our host communities Benefits to the company also flow from the initiative including maintenance of social licence and discouragement of conflicting land uses

The Western Region of Ghana where our mines operate is known as the oil palm belt of Africa Oil palm is indigenous to Ghana and is traditionally a major export

GSOPP is established solely on former subsistence farms with no forest land take Indeed the GSOPP model goes further as GSOPP does not own the land upon which the plantations are established ndash rather GSOPP is a partnership with Traditional Owners ensuring benefits are shared in an equitable way

The revenue sharing model for GSOPP provides 5 of profit to Traditional Owners (a customary land tenancy amount) 20 to loan repayment (ploughed back into ongoing plantation establishment) and 5 to GSOPP for plantation administration (including road upkeep) All remaining profit directly benefits beneficiary farmers

The VP-CR reports annually to the Golden Star Board on the performance of GSOPP with regards to our objectives for poverty reduction

8

How was your primary SDG integrated and anchored throughout your business

The goal relating to No Poverty is anchored in the Golden Star business in many ways and as an example of real interdependence the objectives for GSOPP simultaneously assist Golden Star more broadly in our core business

In Ghana as elsewhere in the world there is considerable tension over land access and uses At the same time great expectation follows the arrival of a mine in a host community and whilst it may be desired a company cannot employ everyone who wants work in the mine

As a synergy of our mining business Golden Star determined to develop a model for sustainable alternative livelihoods to demonstrate to host communities that good reliable incomes can be made outside of the mining industry and that people need not turn to illegal mining to be successful if they cannot find mainstream employment

Our commitment to GSOPP and its goals for poverty eradication are demonstrated in our Community Development and Support Policy and our contribution of $1 per ounce of gold produced being directed to GSOPP for a total commitment to date of over US$66MAdditionally GSOPP and its objective to end poverty is integrated and anchored in our business in the following way

bull GSOPP leadership report directly to the VP Corporate Responsibility

bull Key members of the GSOPP Board hold positions within the company

bull GSOPP reports routinely on achievement of its targets for poverty reduction

This is in addition to other programs through our mining business on wealth creation value retention and benefit sharing

Were any partnerships leveraged or created

The very model of GSOPP is one of partnership Golden Star is a private company that has established a not-for-profit business - GSOPP GSOPP (provides start-up capital systems standards management and agronomic expertise) partners with Traditional Landowners (provide land) beneficiary farmers (operate the farms) host communities (supply farm labour) and the agro-forestry industry (who provide extension support and specialized industry expertise as well as act as downstream market) GSOPP receives the support of the agro-forestry industry in several specialized areas of agronomics including foliar analysis soils analysis pest and disease control These services are provided to GSOPP for free under the partnership GSOPP has been invited to participate in the much awaited Tree Crops Development Board and various oil palm and cashew alliances

Other key partners of GSOPP in the past three years have included GIZ (aid agency) who have partnered with Golden Star and GSOPP to bring numerous social welfare and health programs to the GSOPP beneficiaries In 2018 through one such partnership GIZ matched Golden Star funding with donor funding for long-lasting insecticide treated nets (for malaria reduction) Golden Star issued its nets to its workforce and GIZ matched that funding with 3000 nets for host community from which all GSOPP participants (beneficiary farmers and farm workers) received a family sized net (in Ghana most families sleep in a single room all together)In another partnership with the Solidaridad Network (aid agency) GSOPP has been supported with programs on agronomics and out-grower programs to expand GSOPP outreach

Did you employ any innovative approaches in your efforts to implement the goal

The entire GSOPP is innovative Within Ghana the government and private sector have a long history of working towards developing a lasting social enterprise initiative to provide employment and reduce poverty Built upon previous less successful models in the country the GSOPP concept was developed to address the myriad of seemingly conflicting needs of projects of this typebull Buy in and partnership with Traditional Landownersbull Modalities for ensuring consistent application of international

best practicesbull Structured in a way to ensure regular high-value income to

participantsbull Company need to avoid displacement (as a company that

ascribes to IFC Performance Standard 5)bull Equitable and fair involvement of genuine host community

members (not internal immigrants)bull Revolving model where loan repayments fund plantation

expansion allowing for new participant beneficiariesbull Identification of partners who support our intent for GSOPP ndash

that of host community benefit

The GSOPP model is now widely regarded in Ghana as one of the very few projects of its scale that has successfully leveraged these aspects (formerly considered constraints) to become assets of the approachIn fact in 2018 alone Golden Star and GSOPP hosted numerous study tours and groups to review the model and its milestone successes includingbull Ministry of Trade and Industrybull Minerals Commissionbull 1D1F ndash Initiative of the Ghana Governmentbull Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Internationale Zusammenarbeit

(GIZ)bull The Canadian High Commissionbull The Solidaridad Networkbull Newmont Gold Corporation

The expansion of GSOPP into former mined lands in 2017 and 2018 has separately been recognised by the Canada Mining Innovation Council as innovative

9

How were KPIs and the levels of success outlined and defined

Some key measures of impact and success were identified as followsbull Impact on poverty eradication ndash beneficiaries earn well above

the living wage for Ghana (2018 860-900 GHc per month)bull Traditional landowner support in the form of agreement for use

of land ndash some 6000 Ha of land now committedttbull Improvement in financial security of participants - formerly

poverty stricken farmers now earn 47 times the mean consumption level and more than 17 times the Ghanaian poverty line In real terms farmers earn more than District Education heads

bull Farmer social security elements ndashmost had no bank account no insurance and no savings Now all now have bank accounts more than half have National Health Insurance (was higher prior than 2018 as the Government ran out of insurance cards) and most now have savings

bull Land use acceptability ndash where illegal mining was previously considered the only high value earning alternative to formal mining GSOPP is now upheld as a viable alternative This is most evident in the fact that despite wide-scale devastation in the country generally for illegal mining at no point in time have the GSOPP plantations suffered any incursion from illegal miners

bull Multiple and sequential land use ndash with the expansion of GSOPP into former mined lands ie two former tailings storage facilities of the company Golden Star has demonstrated that one high value land use (mining) does not have to displace other high value uses if sequential land use principles are applied

bull Intergenerational equity ndash most participant dependents are now in school (gt80) most farmers have successors identified (89) and most successors are trained on oil palm cultivation (60)

How were reporting and monitoring conceptualized and undertaken

GSOPP is a subsidiary company registered with and governed by the laws of Ghana As such GSOPP reporting and monitoring covers three primary arenas

Firstly GSOPP must operate as company and comply and report according to all relevant company law including Board reporting financial reporting and similar

Secondly as a commercial scale agricultural company monitoring and reporting on various agronomic metrics sales and revenues is conducted

Thirdly as the leading social enterprise initiative of Golden Star additional reporting and monitoring occurs to ensure achievements of the objectives of poverty reduction and wealth creation This is conducted in the following waysbull Baseline and periodic socioeconomic impact assessments are

carried outbull Routine agronomic metrics are collected analysed and

reported on

bull Routine field evaluations are conducted to ensure conformance to best farm management practices

bull Engagement and consultation with beneficiaries and participants to understand needs

bull Development of Farmer Associations ndash to ensure internal mechanisms for self-monitoring and reporting are established

bull Programs to monitor the evolution of GSOPP towards future objectives such as

Organic growth Downstream processing Farmer succession planning Future re-plantingbull Monitoring and reporting on impact based KPIs (see previous

section)bull Monitoring of systems such as those for communications

grievance and incidents

With the support and advice of our various partners GSOPP has continued to grow and evolve and new methods of monitoring and reporting have been implemented over time

What communications strategy did you employ to share the initiative with your stakehoders

The Traditional Owners enter into an MOU allowing GSOPP use of the land for plantation ensuring FPIC principles are upheld GSOPP with the Golden Star contribution develops the plantations on the lands offered using a local labour pool from the host community creating immediate employment and stable incomes for households on the plantation

After 4 years of development under GSOPP management the plantation reaches income level and 4 Ha plots are allocated The selection of beneficiaries is based on impact and resident status and is conducted by a panel comprising landowners (2) GSOPP (2) elected official for the area (1) and 2 observers (chief farmers) GSOPP continues to provide management and support to farmers and the farmers receive an interest free loan to develop their plantation

Tenancy agreements are established with farmers incorporating loan re-payment obligations for maintenance harvesting and sale of farm proceeds The interest-free loan repayments are directed back into GSOPP for continued operation and expansion

With this concept of partnership the major issues confronting land tenure associated with large scale agricultural developments are to a greater extent minimized

GSOPP has a structured approach to communications includingbull Monthly Farmer Association and field advisory meetings with

smallholder groups bull Periodic field demonstrationsbull Regular field inspection with smallholder farmersbull Production and issuance of Farmer Loan Statements bull Annual meetings with agronomic industry experts bull Production performance review meetings

In addition to these elements of communications strategy Golden Star maintains a separate three-tiered consultation structure and grievance mechanism as required by IFC PS 5

10

What were some key lessons learned Please also elaborate on any setbacks you may have encountered

Key lessons learnedbull Most small-holders in Ghana plant wildings (harvested from

the wild) which do not always achieve the yield of nursery farmed high yielding varietals

bull Participants require regular income (which the model provides for)

bull Participants respond well to agronomic extension activitiesbull Diligence and persistence is required to ensure adherence to

best farm management practices - systems must be in place to ensure defaulting cannot occur to reduce risk to the entire plantation

bull The system of farmer loans ensures ownership commitment and pride in success ndash these are key to the viability of the social enterprise initiative

bull The GSOPP model for engagement and agreement (MOU) with Traditional Landowners ensures land access prohibits conflicting land uses from being allowed and ensures lsquoownershiprsquo by these critical stakeholders

bull Obtaining fertilizer on credit frees up capital for annual plantation expansion

bull Collaboration and partnership with NGOs aid agencies private and public sector has dramatically enhanced the sustainability elements of GSOPP These partnerships leverage the best of the partners for the benefits of host communities

GSOPP has not encountered any real set-backs as considerable time and energy has been spent to ensure a robust and viable model for development If the host community were engaged on this point they would highlight that having additional funding to accelerate the rate of expansion would be desirable so more people can benefit

What were the key impacts and results Feel free to include links to external reports or sources in your answer

Key impactsbull Over 750 employed - 317 farmers and 430 workers More than

either of our mine businessesbull Yields 3 times Ghanaian small-holder average ndash industry

leading practice for Ghanabull Developed on former subsistence farms - no damage to land of

conservation valuebull Almost a third of participants are female 7 of farmers are

under 30 and 36 under 45 years of agebull 1133 hectares of oil palm plantations are established in ten

host communitiesbull Production at a modest 529 t in 2010 has increased to over

10000 t in 2018 Since 2010 63761 t has been produced realizing significant revenues to farmers and regular wages for workers

bull Farmers earn ~ 14016 Ghc pa 17 times the poverty line and well above the 2018 Ghana living wage

bull gt 80 of farmer and worker dependents are at school

SustainabilityGSOPP has successfullybull Established Farmer Associations at all plantationsbull Inaugurated a micro credit scheme in a country where credit is

difficult to accessbull Commenced organic growth into former mined lands -

recognised by Canada Mining Innovation Council bull Documented a business plan and case for downstream

processing

RecognitionGSOPP has received national and international recognitionbull 2008 Nedbank Capital Green Mining Award (Limited Resources

Category) ndash first time this was ever awarded outside of South Africa

bull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Award winner ndash Golden Star (incorporating GSOPP)

bull 2018 Ghana Mining Industry Awards - Best Performer in Corporate Social Investment

bull Recognition at three Ghanaian National Farmers Day celebrations

Linksbull Tenth anniversary of GSOPP blogbull GSOPP winner of Ghana Mining Industry Award for Corporate

Social Investmentbull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Awards

winner videobull GSOPP Portfolios

11

How was your primary SDG integrated and anchored throughout your business

The goal relating to No Poverty is anchored in the Golden Star business in many ways and as an example of real interdependence the objectives for GSOPP simultaneously assist Golden Star more broadly in our core business

In Ghana as elsewhere in the world there is considerable tension over land access and uses At the same time great expectation follows the arrival of a mine in a host community and whilst it may be desired a company cannot employ everyone who wants work in the mine

As a synergy of our mining business Golden Star determined to develop a model for sustainable alternative livelihoods to demonstrate to host communities that good reliable incomes can be made outside of the mining industry and that people need not turn to illegal mining to be successful if they cannot find mainstream employment

Our commitment to GSOPP and its goals for poverty eradication are demonstrated in our Community Development and Support Policy and our contribution of $1 per ounce of gold produced being directed to GSOPP for a total commitment to date of over US$66MAdditionally GSOPP and its objective to end poverty is integrated and anchored in our business in the following way

bull GSOPP leadership report directly to the VP Corporate Responsibility

bull Key members of the GSOPP Board hold positions within the company

bull GSOPP reports routinely on achievement of its targets for poverty reduction

This is in addition to other programs through our mining business on wealth creation value retention and benefit sharing

Were any partnerships leveraged or created

The very model of GSOPP is one of partnership Golden Star is a private company that has established a not-for-profit business - GSOPP GSOPP (provides start-up capital systems standards management and agronomic expertise) partners with Traditional Landowners (provide land) beneficiary farmers (operate the farms) host communities (supply farm labour) and the agro-forestry industry (who provide extension support and specialized industry expertise as well as act as downstream market) GSOPP receives the support of the agro-forestry industry in several specialized areas of agronomics including foliar analysis soils analysis pest and disease control These services are provided to GSOPP for free under the partnership GSOPP has been invited to participate in the much awaited Tree Crops Development Board and various oil palm and cashew alliances

Other key partners of GSOPP in the past three years have included GIZ (aid agency) who have partnered with Golden Star and GSOPP to bring numerous social welfare and health programs to the GSOPP beneficiaries In 2018 through one such partnership GIZ matched Golden Star funding with donor funding for long-lasting insecticide treated nets (for malaria reduction) Golden Star issued its nets to its workforce and GIZ matched that funding with 3000 nets for host community from which all GSOPP participants (beneficiary farmers and farm workers) received a family sized net (in Ghana most families sleep in a single room all together)In another partnership with the Solidaridad Network (aid agency) GSOPP has been supported with programs on agronomics and out-grower programs to expand GSOPP outreach

Did you employ any innovative approaches in your efforts to implement the goal

The entire GSOPP is innovative Within Ghana the government and private sector have a long history of working towards developing a lasting social enterprise initiative to provide employment and reduce poverty Built upon previous less successful models in the country the GSOPP concept was developed to address the myriad of seemingly conflicting needs of projects of this typebull Buy in and partnership with Traditional Landownersbull Modalities for ensuring consistent application of international

best practicesbull Structured in a way to ensure regular high-value income to

participantsbull Company need to avoid displacement (as a company that

ascribes to IFC Performance Standard 5)bull Equitable and fair involvement of genuine host community

members (not internal immigrants)bull Revolving model where loan repayments fund plantation

expansion allowing for new participant beneficiariesbull Identification of partners who support our intent for GSOPP ndash

that of host community benefit

The GSOPP model is now widely regarded in Ghana as one of the very few projects of its scale that has successfully leveraged these aspects (formerly considered constraints) to become assets of the approachIn fact in 2018 alone Golden Star and GSOPP hosted numerous study tours and groups to review the model and its milestone successes includingbull Ministry of Trade and Industrybull Minerals Commissionbull 1D1F ndash Initiative of the Ghana Governmentbull Deutsche Gesellschaft fuer Internationale Zusammenarbeit

(GIZ)bull The Canadian High Commissionbull The Solidaridad Networkbull Newmont Gold Corporation

The expansion of GSOPP into former mined lands in 2017 and 2018 has separately been recognised by the Canada Mining Innovation Council as innovative

9

How were KPIs and the levels of success outlined and defined

Some key measures of impact and success were identified as followsbull Impact on poverty eradication ndash beneficiaries earn well above

the living wage for Ghana (2018 860-900 GHc per month)bull Traditional landowner support in the form of agreement for use

of land ndash some 6000 Ha of land now committedttbull Improvement in financial security of participants - formerly

poverty stricken farmers now earn 47 times the mean consumption level and more than 17 times the Ghanaian poverty line In real terms farmers earn more than District Education heads

bull Farmer social security elements ndashmost had no bank account no insurance and no savings Now all now have bank accounts more than half have National Health Insurance (was higher prior than 2018 as the Government ran out of insurance cards) and most now have savings

bull Land use acceptability ndash where illegal mining was previously considered the only high value earning alternative to formal mining GSOPP is now upheld as a viable alternative This is most evident in the fact that despite wide-scale devastation in the country generally for illegal mining at no point in time have the GSOPP plantations suffered any incursion from illegal miners

bull Multiple and sequential land use ndash with the expansion of GSOPP into former mined lands ie two former tailings storage facilities of the company Golden Star has demonstrated that one high value land use (mining) does not have to displace other high value uses if sequential land use principles are applied

bull Intergenerational equity ndash most participant dependents are now in school (gt80) most farmers have successors identified (89) and most successors are trained on oil palm cultivation (60)

How were reporting and monitoring conceptualized and undertaken

GSOPP is a subsidiary company registered with and governed by the laws of Ghana As such GSOPP reporting and monitoring covers three primary arenas

Firstly GSOPP must operate as company and comply and report according to all relevant company law including Board reporting financial reporting and similar

Secondly as a commercial scale agricultural company monitoring and reporting on various agronomic metrics sales and revenues is conducted

Thirdly as the leading social enterprise initiative of Golden Star additional reporting and monitoring occurs to ensure achievements of the objectives of poverty reduction and wealth creation This is conducted in the following waysbull Baseline and periodic socioeconomic impact assessments are

carried outbull Routine agronomic metrics are collected analysed and

reported on

bull Routine field evaluations are conducted to ensure conformance to best farm management practices

bull Engagement and consultation with beneficiaries and participants to understand needs

bull Development of Farmer Associations ndash to ensure internal mechanisms for self-monitoring and reporting are established

bull Programs to monitor the evolution of GSOPP towards future objectives such as

Organic growth Downstream processing Farmer succession planning Future re-plantingbull Monitoring and reporting on impact based KPIs (see previous

section)bull Monitoring of systems such as those for communications

grievance and incidents

With the support and advice of our various partners GSOPP has continued to grow and evolve and new methods of monitoring and reporting have been implemented over time

What communications strategy did you employ to share the initiative with your stakehoders

The Traditional Owners enter into an MOU allowing GSOPP use of the land for plantation ensuring FPIC principles are upheld GSOPP with the Golden Star contribution develops the plantations on the lands offered using a local labour pool from the host community creating immediate employment and stable incomes for households on the plantation

After 4 years of development under GSOPP management the plantation reaches income level and 4 Ha plots are allocated The selection of beneficiaries is based on impact and resident status and is conducted by a panel comprising landowners (2) GSOPP (2) elected official for the area (1) and 2 observers (chief farmers) GSOPP continues to provide management and support to farmers and the farmers receive an interest free loan to develop their plantation

Tenancy agreements are established with farmers incorporating loan re-payment obligations for maintenance harvesting and sale of farm proceeds The interest-free loan repayments are directed back into GSOPP for continued operation and expansion

With this concept of partnership the major issues confronting land tenure associated with large scale agricultural developments are to a greater extent minimized

GSOPP has a structured approach to communications includingbull Monthly Farmer Association and field advisory meetings with

smallholder groups bull Periodic field demonstrationsbull Regular field inspection with smallholder farmersbull Production and issuance of Farmer Loan Statements bull Annual meetings with agronomic industry experts bull Production performance review meetings

In addition to these elements of communications strategy Golden Star maintains a separate three-tiered consultation structure and grievance mechanism as required by IFC PS 5

10

What were some key lessons learned Please also elaborate on any setbacks you may have encountered

Key lessons learnedbull Most small-holders in Ghana plant wildings (harvested from

the wild) which do not always achieve the yield of nursery farmed high yielding varietals

bull Participants require regular income (which the model provides for)

bull Participants respond well to agronomic extension activitiesbull Diligence and persistence is required to ensure adherence to

best farm management practices - systems must be in place to ensure defaulting cannot occur to reduce risk to the entire plantation

bull The system of farmer loans ensures ownership commitment and pride in success ndash these are key to the viability of the social enterprise initiative

bull The GSOPP model for engagement and agreement (MOU) with Traditional Landowners ensures land access prohibits conflicting land uses from being allowed and ensures lsquoownershiprsquo by these critical stakeholders

bull Obtaining fertilizer on credit frees up capital for annual plantation expansion

bull Collaboration and partnership with NGOs aid agencies private and public sector has dramatically enhanced the sustainability elements of GSOPP These partnerships leverage the best of the partners for the benefits of host communities

GSOPP has not encountered any real set-backs as considerable time and energy has been spent to ensure a robust and viable model for development If the host community were engaged on this point they would highlight that having additional funding to accelerate the rate of expansion would be desirable so more people can benefit

What were the key impacts and results Feel free to include links to external reports or sources in your answer

Key impactsbull Over 750 employed - 317 farmers and 430 workers More than

either of our mine businessesbull Yields 3 times Ghanaian small-holder average ndash industry

leading practice for Ghanabull Developed on former subsistence farms - no damage to land of

conservation valuebull Almost a third of participants are female 7 of farmers are

under 30 and 36 under 45 years of agebull 1133 hectares of oil palm plantations are established in ten

host communitiesbull Production at a modest 529 t in 2010 has increased to over

10000 t in 2018 Since 2010 63761 t has been produced realizing significant revenues to farmers and regular wages for workers

bull Farmers earn ~ 14016 Ghc pa 17 times the poverty line and well above the 2018 Ghana living wage

bull gt 80 of farmer and worker dependents are at school

SustainabilityGSOPP has successfullybull Established Farmer Associations at all plantationsbull Inaugurated a micro credit scheme in a country where credit is

difficult to accessbull Commenced organic growth into former mined lands -

recognised by Canada Mining Innovation Council bull Documented a business plan and case for downstream

processing

RecognitionGSOPP has received national and international recognitionbull 2008 Nedbank Capital Green Mining Award (Limited Resources

Category) ndash first time this was ever awarded outside of South Africa

bull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Award winner ndash Golden Star (incorporating GSOPP)

bull 2018 Ghana Mining Industry Awards - Best Performer in Corporate Social Investment

bull Recognition at three Ghanaian National Farmers Day celebrations

Linksbull Tenth anniversary of GSOPP blogbull GSOPP winner of Ghana Mining Industry Award for Corporate

Social Investmentbull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Awards

winner videobull GSOPP Portfolios

11

How were KPIs and the levels of success outlined and defined

Some key measures of impact and success were identified as followsbull Impact on poverty eradication ndash beneficiaries earn well above

the living wage for Ghana (2018 860-900 GHc per month)bull Traditional landowner support in the form of agreement for use

of land ndash some 6000 Ha of land now committedttbull Improvement in financial security of participants - formerly

poverty stricken farmers now earn 47 times the mean consumption level and more than 17 times the Ghanaian poverty line In real terms farmers earn more than District Education heads

bull Farmer social security elements ndashmost had no bank account no insurance and no savings Now all now have bank accounts more than half have National Health Insurance (was higher prior than 2018 as the Government ran out of insurance cards) and most now have savings

bull Land use acceptability ndash where illegal mining was previously considered the only high value earning alternative to formal mining GSOPP is now upheld as a viable alternative This is most evident in the fact that despite wide-scale devastation in the country generally for illegal mining at no point in time have the GSOPP plantations suffered any incursion from illegal miners

bull Multiple and sequential land use ndash with the expansion of GSOPP into former mined lands ie two former tailings storage facilities of the company Golden Star has demonstrated that one high value land use (mining) does not have to displace other high value uses if sequential land use principles are applied

bull Intergenerational equity ndash most participant dependents are now in school (gt80) most farmers have successors identified (89) and most successors are trained on oil palm cultivation (60)

How were reporting and monitoring conceptualized and undertaken

GSOPP is a subsidiary company registered with and governed by the laws of Ghana As such GSOPP reporting and monitoring covers three primary arenas

Firstly GSOPP must operate as company and comply and report according to all relevant company law including Board reporting financial reporting and similar

Secondly as a commercial scale agricultural company monitoring and reporting on various agronomic metrics sales and revenues is conducted

Thirdly as the leading social enterprise initiative of Golden Star additional reporting and monitoring occurs to ensure achievements of the objectives of poverty reduction and wealth creation This is conducted in the following waysbull Baseline and periodic socioeconomic impact assessments are

carried outbull Routine agronomic metrics are collected analysed and

reported on

bull Routine field evaluations are conducted to ensure conformance to best farm management practices

bull Engagement and consultation with beneficiaries and participants to understand needs

bull Development of Farmer Associations ndash to ensure internal mechanisms for self-monitoring and reporting are established

bull Programs to monitor the evolution of GSOPP towards future objectives such as

Organic growth Downstream processing Farmer succession planning Future re-plantingbull Monitoring and reporting on impact based KPIs (see previous

section)bull Monitoring of systems such as those for communications

grievance and incidents

With the support and advice of our various partners GSOPP has continued to grow and evolve and new methods of monitoring and reporting have been implemented over time

What communications strategy did you employ to share the initiative with your stakehoders

The Traditional Owners enter into an MOU allowing GSOPP use of the land for plantation ensuring FPIC principles are upheld GSOPP with the Golden Star contribution develops the plantations on the lands offered using a local labour pool from the host community creating immediate employment and stable incomes for households on the plantation

After 4 years of development under GSOPP management the plantation reaches income level and 4 Ha plots are allocated The selection of beneficiaries is based on impact and resident status and is conducted by a panel comprising landowners (2) GSOPP (2) elected official for the area (1) and 2 observers (chief farmers) GSOPP continues to provide management and support to farmers and the farmers receive an interest free loan to develop their plantation

Tenancy agreements are established with farmers incorporating loan re-payment obligations for maintenance harvesting and sale of farm proceeds The interest-free loan repayments are directed back into GSOPP for continued operation and expansion

With this concept of partnership the major issues confronting land tenure associated with large scale agricultural developments are to a greater extent minimized

GSOPP has a structured approach to communications includingbull Monthly Farmer Association and field advisory meetings with

smallholder groups bull Periodic field demonstrationsbull Regular field inspection with smallholder farmersbull Production and issuance of Farmer Loan Statements bull Annual meetings with agronomic industry experts bull Production performance review meetings

In addition to these elements of communications strategy Golden Star maintains a separate three-tiered consultation structure and grievance mechanism as required by IFC PS 5

10

What were some key lessons learned Please also elaborate on any setbacks you may have encountered

Key lessons learnedbull Most small-holders in Ghana plant wildings (harvested from

the wild) which do not always achieve the yield of nursery farmed high yielding varietals

bull Participants require regular income (which the model provides for)

bull Participants respond well to agronomic extension activitiesbull Diligence and persistence is required to ensure adherence to

best farm management practices - systems must be in place to ensure defaulting cannot occur to reduce risk to the entire plantation

bull The system of farmer loans ensures ownership commitment and pride in success ndash these are key to the viability of the social enterprise initiative

bull The GSOPP model for engagement and agreement (MOU) with Traditional Landowners ensures land access prohibits conflicting land uses from being allowed and ensures lsquoownershiprsquo by these critical stakeholders

bull Obtaining fertilizer on credit frees up capital for annual plantation expansion

bull Collaboration and partnership with NGOs aid agencies private and public sector has dramatically enhanced the sustainability elements of GSOPP These partnerships leverage the best of the partners for the benefits of host communities

GSOPP has not encountered any real set-backs as considerable time and energy has been spent to ensure a robust and viable model for development If the host community were engaged on this point they would highlight that having additional funding to accelerate the rate of expansion would be desirable so more people can benefit

What were the key impacts and results Feel free to include links to external reports or sources in your answer

Key impactsbull Over 750 employed - 317 farmers and 430 workers More than

either of our mine businessesbull Yields 3 times Ghanaian small-holder average ndash industry

leading practice for Ghanabull Developed on former subsistence farms - no damage to land of

conservation valuebull Almost a third of participants are female 7 of farmers are

under 30 and 36 under 45 years of agebull 1133 hectares of oil palm plantations are established in ten

host communitiesbull Production at a modest 529 t in 2010 has increased to over

10000 t in 2018 Since 2010 63761 t has been produced realizing significant revenues to farmers and regular wages for workers

bull Farmers earn ~ 14016 Ghc pa 17 times the poverty line and well above the 2018 Ghana living wage

bull gt 80 of farmer and worker dependents are at school

SustainabilityGSOPP has successfullybull Established Farmer Associations at all plantationsbull Inaugurated a micro credit scheme in a country where credit is

difficult to accessbull Commenced organic growth into former mined lands -

recognised by Canada Mining Innovation Council bull Documented a business plan and case for downstream

processing

RecognitionGSOPP has received national and international recognitionbull 2008 Nedbank Capital Green Mining Award (Limited Resources

Category) ndash first time this was ever awarded outside of South Africa

bull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Award winner ndash Golden Star (incorporating GSOPP)

bull 2018 Ghana Mining Industry Awards - Best Performer in Corporate Social Investment

bull Recognition at three Ghanaian National Farmers Day celebrations

Linksbull Tenth anniversary of GSOPP blogbull GSOPP winner of Ghana Mining Industry Award for Corporate

Social Investmentbull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Awards

winner videobull GSOPP Portfolios

11

What were some key lessons learned Please also elaborate on any setbacks you may have encountered

Key lessons learnedbull Most small-holders in Ghana plant wildings (harvested from

the wild) which do not always achieve the yield of nursery farmed high yielding varietals

bull Participants require regular income (which the model provides for)

bull Participants respond well to agronomic extension activitiesbull Diligence and persistence is required to ensure adherence to

best farm management practices - systems must be in place to ensure defaulting cannot occur to reduce risk to the entire plantation

bull The system of farmer loans ensures ownership commitment and pride in success ndash these are key to the viability of the social enterprise initiative

bull The GSOPP model for engagement and agreement (MOU) with Traditional Landowners ensures land access prohibits conflicting land uses from being allowed and ensures lsquoownershiprsquo by these critical stakeholders

bull Obtaining fertilizer on credit frees up capital for annual plantation expansion

bull Collaboration and partnership with NGOs aid agencies private and public sector has dramatically enhanced the sustainability elements of GSOPP These partnerships leverage the best of the partners for the benefits of host communities

GSOPP has not encountered any real set-backs as considerable time and energy has been spent to ensure a robust and viable model for development If the host community were engaged on this point they would highlight that having additional funding to accelerate the rate of expansion would be desirable so more people can benefit

What were the key impacts and results Feel free to include links to external reports or sources in your answer

Key impactsbull Over 750 employed - 317 farmers and 430 workers More than

either of our mine businessesbull Yields 3 times Ghanaian small-holder average ndash industry

leading practice for Ghanabull Developed on former subsistence farms - no damage to land of

conservation valuebull Almost a third of participants are female 7 of farmers are

under 30 and 36 under 45 years of agebull 1133 hectares of oil palm plantations are established in ten

host communitiesbull Production at a modest 529 t in 2010 has increased to over

10000 t in 2018 Since 2010 63761 t has been produced realizing significant revenues to farmers and regular wages for workers

bull Farmers earn ~ 14016 Ghc pa 17 times the poverty line and well above the 2018 Ghana living wage

bull gt 80 of farmer and worker dependents are at school

SustainabilityGSOPP has successfullybull Established Farmer Associations at all plantationsbull Inaugurated a micro credit scheme in a country where credit is

difficult to accessbull Commenced organic growth into former mined lands -

recognised by Canada Mining Innovation Council bull Documented a business plan and case for downstream

processing

RecognitionGSOPP has received national and international recognitionbull 2008 Nedbank Capital Green Mining Award (Limited Resources

Category) ndash first time this was ever awarded outside of South Africa

bull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Award winner ndash Golden Star (incorporating GSOPP)

bull 2018 Ghana Mining Industry Awards - Best Performer in Corporate Social Investment

bull Recognition at three Ghanaian National Farmers Day celebrations

Linksbull Tenth anniversary of GSOPP blogbull GSOPP winner of Ghana Mining Industry Award for Corporate

Social Investmentbull 2018 PDAC Environmental and Social Responsibility Awards

winner videobull GSOPP Portfolios

11